Taliban blamed for cutting off power supply to Herat

HERAT CITY (Pajhwok): Local officials on Wednesday said Taliban militants had cut off the supply of electricity imported from Turkmenistan to western Herat province.

Jilani Farhad, the governor’s spokesman, told Pajhwok Afghan News the insurgents cut the power in Rabat Sangi district of the province at around 10pm on Tuesday night.

He said 50 percent of Herat residents had been without access to electricity after the overnight the incident. The rebels allegedly fired at a pylon in the Khalawak area of the district.

“A technical team of Da Afghanistan Breshna Shirkat (DABS) has arrived in the area and they will soon repair the damaged pylon,” the gubernatorial spokesman added.

Mohammad Tahir Arif, DABS regional head, said the Afghan forces were engaged in a clash with the Taliban in Khalwak area. The militants hit the power pylon during the battle, he alleged.

“It was around 10pm last night when the electricity supply was disconnected. We thought there was a short circuit, but later came to know that a clash between Taliban and Afghan forces had caused the damage,” he said.

Meanwhile, a number of residents expressed concern over the incident and asked local officials to fix the problem at the earliest possible.

Habibullah, a resident of Herat, said: “Our electricity supply has been disconnected in the hot weather. Many people are in trouble as their businesses are reliant on electricity.”

Aziz Ahmad, another resident of the province said they had been without water and were suffering from extreme hot weather.

Turkmenistan exports 70 megawatts of electricity to Herat and half of the province’s residents consume the power imported from Iran.